Non-pharmacological and Lifestyle Approaches to Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: 3. Herbal Remedies
Herbal medicines are crude drugs of vegetable or plant origin, which are used for the prevention or the treatment of disease states or to attain or maintain a condition of improved health. The use of herbs can be divided into four main categories:
- Folk Herbalism: You may well have come into contact with this: we use the term folk herbalism to describe traditional healing methods based upon plants. Many of our ancestors brought folk remedies from Europe or learned of healing herbs from Native Americans
- Western Medical Herbalism: This has been developing in Europe over the last century, and represents an attempt to classify and codify medically useful herbs
- Ayurvedic Herbalism: This is the ancient traditional herbalism of the Indian Subcontinent. Some Ayurvedic herbs have found their way into conventional medicine. The best-known example is the drug reserpine, which was at one time used for treating high blood pressure and mania. It was extracted from the Himalayan bush Rauwolfia serpentina. Ayurvedic herbs are most readily available in cities with large Indian populations
- Chinese Herbalism: One of the five branches of traditional Chinese medicine, there are many thousands of Chinese herbs, which are usually administered in complex combinations. Though most are prepared with close attention to detail, there have been many reports in the literature of adulteration of Chinese herbs with heavy metals.
Herbs are used directly as teas or extracts, or they may be used in the production of drugs. Around 25% of the prescription drugs sold in the United States are plant based. Two good examples are aspirin, which was originally extracted from the bark of the willow tree and digoxin, a purified form of digitalis, from the foxglove. Many more herbal ingredients are present in over-the-counter medicines, particularly in laxatives.
Herbal medicines are considered to be dietary supplements; therefore they are not required to meet the standard for drugs specified in Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Acts. They are only required to meet the standards set forth in the 1994 Dietary Supplement and Health Education Act (DSHEA). Furthermore, they may be produced without complying with standards for good manufacturing practice. They also do not need the prior approval of safety and efficacy by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). So long as the term “disease” is not on the label, the FDA has no regulatory powers.
Many herbal products have been used to treat Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), and there are hundreds of websites claiming that their products are effective. However the research is often not quite what it seems. Some sites simply use loads of testimonials, but happily there are others who have products supported by empirical research. The use of herbal remedies in ADHD is popular in Europe, although the problem is less widely recognized in that part of the world. The most popular include sedative herbs, herbs used to enhance brain function, antioxidants and stimulants. The last category is herbs that are used to treat other symptoms, particularly mood disorders that are very common in adults with ADHD.
Medical reviews of herbal remedies do not always make the point that herbalists typically individualize the treatment for the individual. So two people with apparently similar symptoms may receive different treatments.
They are often used together with a whole-foods diet, high in protein and complex carbohydrates and low in simple sugars.
Sedative herbs
Sedative or calming herbs are amongst the most popular herbal options for treating ADHD. These include:
Chamomile
Hops
Lemon balm
Valerian
Kava kava
Sedative herbs may be helpful in promoting sleep in children who have trouble falling asleep. They are generally safe, but there is little scientific evidence that they can improve daytime behavior in children with ADHD, and it is important to be aware that they are medicines that do have side effects and may interact with each other and with prescription medicines. Here is a chart of some interactions between medicinal herbs and drugs.
Brain “enhancing” herbs
A small open study of 36 children with ADHD who were treated with a combination herbal combination of Panax quinquefolium (200 mg) + Ginkgo biloba (50 mg) twice daily for 4 weeks, reported an improvement in 74% at the end of the study. The combination was marketed as AD-FX, but it has recently become difficult to obtain it in the United States for commercial rather than legal reason. Gingko has become one of the most popular herbs given to children with ADHD, but more research is necessary: there is enormous variability in the quality of commercially available herbs. Gingko may also cause bleeding in people at risk of it. It was interesting that Panax was included: there are reorts of people becoming more hyperactive in overdose.
Antioxidant herbs
Pycnogenol (pine bark extract) has been tested in a randomized, controlled trial involving 61 children who received either 1 mg/kg/day Pycnogenol or placebo for 4 weeks. In this study, Pycnogenol was associated with a significant reduction of hyperactivity, improved attention, eye-hand coordination, and concentration. When the herb was stopped, the symptoms returned within a month. An earlier short study in adults had failed to find an effect, but it could have been because of the dose used.
Stimulant herbs
Coffee, tea, and cocoa all have stimulant effects that tend to be milder than medications. Caffeine helped spatial learning deficits in an animal model of ADHD, and there have been several small studies of caffeine, but most have failed to find much benefit. In a double-blind cross-over trial of just 8 boys with ADHD modest doses of caffeine (160 mg, roughly equivalent to 1.5 cups of coffee) were less effective than large doses of methylphenidate (20 mg) in improving behavior. Although many adults self-medicate with coffee, few use it in children with ADHD. And it can, of course, cause insomnia and anxiety.
Chinese herbalists use multiple combinations and there have been some publications (1, 2, 3,) suggesting that further work on Chinese herbal medicines might be worthwhile. The methods of some Chinese medical research studies are rather different from those done in the West, so we need to be a little cautious.
There are some herbs and supplements that are linked to an increase in symptoms of hyperactivity including:
Yohimbine
Korean ginseng
Siberian ginseng
American ginseng
L-glutamine
Conclusions
Although there is some data, and a lot of practical experience, it is still not clear who is likely to benefit from which herbal remedy. The variable quality of herbal products and the risk that some may be contaminated has added to the uncertainty. It is also important to remember that herbs are drugs, and that they can interact with each other and with prescription medicines, and that just because they are natural, does not necessarily mean that they are safe.
After all, deadly nightshade, arsenic and hurricanes are natural as well.
Dr. Richard G. Petty, MD is a world-renowned authority on the brain, and his revolutionary work on human energy systems has been acclaimed around the globe.
He is also an accredited specialist in internal and metabolic medicine, endocrinology, psychiatry, acupuncture and homeopathy. He has been an innovator and leader of the human potential movement for over thirty years and is also an active researcher, teacher, writer, professional speaker and broadcaster. He is the author of five books, including the groundbreaking and best selling CD series Healing, Meaning and Purpose. He has taught in over 45 countries and 48 states in the last ten years, but spends as much time as possible on his horse farm in Georgia.
